HOW TO GROW OLD HAPPILY TOGETHER All the focus seems to be on how to stay young these days; but we grow older anyway; and if we’re lucky, we will grow old together. There’s a lot of research to show that people who are in happy relationships live longer and healthier lives. If you want your relationship to be happy and healthy as you grow older, follow these guidelines: 1. Learn to talk with each other about everything. Things will change, your sex life, your appearance, your energy, your interests. If you can talk about the changes as they occur, and work together to accommodate them, you’ll be happy for a long time. 2. Save money. Growing old together takes money. Save for your old age. When you are no longer working, you’ll want to travel, to visit family, to enjoy what you have created for yourselves. Planning ahead financially will help you do that. 3. Develop and keep a shared sense of humor. Laughter will brighten your days, make you fall in love over and over with each other, and get you through hard times with your connection intact. 4. Learn to grieve effectively. The longer you live, the more loss you face. You will grieve lost friends and family, lost pets, lost jobs or opportunities, disappointments and other losses; some much greater than others. Learn to grieve together and to support each other in grief. Healthy grieving is an essential life skill. 5. Get in the habit of consulting each other. My husband and I are self-employed, with changing schedules, so we check in each day to share what’s happening in our calendars. Even if you’re retired or your schedules are predictable, don’t forget to check in with each other on a regular basis. Don’t spend any substantial money, or make big time consuming commitments without checking with each other. 6. Draw each other out emotionally. If your partner looks stressed, learn how to ask what’s the matter without being intrusive. When you can share your feelings; whether they’re sad, mad, glad, scared, or stressed, you’ll be better support for each other, and helping ease the stress makes you live longer. A simple question like “How are you doing?” shows your partner you care. 7. Have fun together. Knowing you two are excellent and fun company whether you’re doing dishes or traveling the globe means you’ll be each other’s favorite companions through life. 8. Take care of yourselves and each other. Live a reasonably healthy lifestyle without stressing about it. Keep stress as low as you can, support each other in staying active. If you’re going to be together for a long time, you want to be healthy. 9. Renew your vows. You don’t need to be formal about it, but remind each other you’d marry again if necessary. Renew your commitment frequently. My husband and I wrote our marriage vows in 1982, and we repeat them together frequently. It’s a good reminder of why you’re together, where you came from, and how much you’ve shared. 10. Care about yourselves and each other. Loving your partner successfully requires caring about yourself, too. Don’t let your love get too one-sided. There’s plenty of love to go around, and it grows the more you use it. Author Bio:Tina B. Tessina, Ph.D. is a licensed psychotherapist in S. California since 1978 with over 40 years’ experience in counseling individuals and couples and author of 15 books in 17 languages, including Dr. Romance’s Guide to Finding Love Today; It Ends With You: Grow Up and Out of Dysfunction; The Ten Smartest Decisions a Woman Can Make After Forty; Love Styles: How to Celebrate Your Differences, The Real 13th Step, How to Be Happy Partners: Working it Out Together and How to Be a Couple and Still Be Free. She writes the “Dr. Romance blog, and the “Happiness Tips from Tina” email newsletter. Online, she’s known as “Dr. Romance.” Dr. Tessina appears frequently on radio, TV, video and podcasts. She tweets @tinatessina
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